Chapter 154: The Strong Eating the Weak
After they drank the porridge and had their lunch, Liu Suifeng pulled Xiao Chen to the side and said, “Ye Chen, if I’m not wrong, your Spirit Fox has the bloodline of a Six-Tailed Spirit Fox.”
Xiao Chen nodded, “Is there any problem?”
Liu Suifeng replied solemnly, “If there is no need, don’t bring this fellow out of Qingyun Peak. Ye Chen, you should understand the concept of not revealing your wealth!”
Xiao Chen felt it was strange and asked, “Could it be Heavenly Saber Pavilion is that lawless?”
Liu Suifeng shook his head and smiled bitterly, “Qingyun Peak is naturally clean, but Heavenly Saber Pavilion is full of all sorts of people; there is a mixture of good and bad. It is not as pure as you think. The principle of the strong eating the weak applies here on a daily basis as well.”
Xiao Chen frowned slightly; he could not help but be deep in thought. He thought of the outer disciples like Liu Chen. If the Heavenly Saber Pavilion was full of people like this, then Liu Suifeng’s words had to be considered.
After they had lunch, Xiao Bai left the Dueling Ground with Xiao Meng without a conscience. Xiao Chen knew it did not like staying in the Spirit Blood Jade. After all, there was not much danger in Qingyun Peak. So, he let it be.
“Ye Chen, I have something going on in the afternoon and won't be able to accompany you. My apologies!” Liu Suifeng said apologetically to Xiao Chen.
Xiao Chen nodded his head; Liu Suifeng already patiently taught him for the entire morning. He was already very grateful for that; he did not need him to continue staying here to guide him. Furthermore, the eight basic movements of the saber did not require too much guidance.
Liu Suifeng smiled when he saw Xiao Chen nod, “Interesting; I shall be leaving first. Remember not to remove the weights on your body. Otherwise, if my sis sees it, I will be in for it.”
Xiao Chen smiled faintly as he watched Liu Suifeng leave. He was not in a rush to practice the Basic Saber Techniques. After he had completely digested all the food in his body, he warmed up his body.
Relying just on his physical body, Xiao Chen started running slowly around the dueling ground. Xiao Chen experienced cultivating after his body reached the limits during the morning run; it was much more effective than usual.
After a while, Xiao Chen slowly ran around the dueling grounds five or six times. This time, he could clearly feel a mysterious absorption coming from below the Heavenly Mountain Stones. Every step he took, his physical strength would be sapped further.
This feeling was very familiar; after thinking for a long time, he finally remembered where he encountered this feeling. When he was at the towering stone platform in the Sage’s Ancient Remnant at Savage Forest, every time someone climbed up the steps, they would exhaust a lot of Essence.
The difference between these two places was great; one absorbed physical energy, and the other absorbed Essence. However, they worked the same way; every time a step was taken, there would be a certain amount absorbed. However, Xiao Chen did not know if they were related.
Sweat slowly covered Xiao Chen’s forehead. As Xiao Chen wiped the sweat off and continued walking, he could feel his physical strength being exhausted. He clenched his teeth and continued running.
Round after round, step by step in a tireless manner, he relied only on his physical strength and endured an endless loneliness. Xiao Chen continued running around the spacious dueling grounds.
Xiao Chen ran and ran and ran, but he still had not reached his limits yet. I must persevere! After running thirty rounds, Xiao Chen felt a little giddy, but he knew this was not his limit yet.
Xiao Chen continued running for fifty rounds before slowly coming to a stop. He controlled his body’s impulse to immediately lie down and rest.
Xiao Chen slowly sat in a cross-legged position and entered a state of cultivation. He slowly circulated the Purple Thunder Divine Incantation, and the Essence started to flow into his meridians.
It was unknown how long Liu Ruyue stood quietly outside the door and watched Xiao Chen. Seeing Xiao Chen struggle, she seemed to see her younger self.
Because the older generation had passed away, the originally bustling dueling ground became incomparably cold. However, she still dragged her young body around, running continuously like Xiao Chen was doing now.
Resisting the limitless loneliness and relying on the power of her determination, she finally reached where she was, step by step.
The Essence permeated thought Xiao Chen’s meridians and entered his skin, flesh, and bones. His whole body went numb again; his sweat evaporated continuously, creating pillars of white steam.
The cells of his skin, flesh, and bones started to undergo this intense activity. After his body was pushed to the limits and tempered continuously by Essence, it grew even stronger.
After a while, Xiao Chen opened his eyes and stretched himself. There were crackling sounds coming from the bones all over his body. Even crisp crackle made him feel very spirited.
“Elder Sister Ruyue, why are you here?” Xiao Chen heard footsteps and turned around to discover Liu Ruyue dressed in tight-fitting long robes walking over slowly to him.
Liu Ruyue revealed a warm smile; her mature charm was now completely unleashed, “That brat Suifeng goes to Jade Maiden Peak every afternoon. I felt worried and came over to take a look.”
“You should have already learned the eight moves of the saber. Show it to me now.”
Xiao Chen nodded his head and drew his saber with a ‘huang dang’ sound. He focused himself and stepped forward with his right foot. His saber caused a pleasant wind as it swept across the air; this was the first move of the Basic Saber Techniques, sweep.
The saber paused in midair for a while then he took a step forward with his left foot. His feet were pressed together. and he shouted lightly. The saber hacked downwards; this was the second move, hack.
The instant the saber landed and moved to its lowest point, Xiao Chen took a step back and raised the saber. This was the third move, push!
The remaining five moves, pare, skim, swing, chop, and pierce were all demonstrated with each step continuously. Although it was somewhat unproficient, he had barely achieved it in one breath.
Liu Ruyue nodded lightly and smiled, “Not bad; at least the basic movements and steps are correct. It still lacks some vigor and coherence. However, just take it slowly.
“Use your eight basic moves against me, and I will slowly guide you. You will understand after a while. These Basic Saber Techniques was created by a predecessor after spending tens of thousands of years on it. It is very important to a saber user.”
Hearing Liu Ruyue wanted him to exchange blows with her using the Basic Saber Techniques, Xiao Chen felt overwhelmed by his master's favor. A Martial Saint was willing to exchange blows with him, teaching him the Basic Saber Techniques. Literally, no one else got to enjoy such treatment before.
“Elder Sister Ruyue, this is not right. It is just the Basic Saber Techniques; I can practice it on my own. There is no need to waste your time,” Xiao Chen rejected her offer.
An impatient expression flashed on Liu Ruyue’s pretty face. She said, “Stop dawdling. A man should be more direct. You are more sensitive and frustrating to deal with than a woman.”
Xiao Chen did not dare to disobey. He drew his saber and stood across from Liu Ruyue. Liu Ruyue revealed a smile and said, “That’s the way; I’ll make the first move.”
After she spoke, there was a cold gleam. Liu Ruyue’s small saber moved forward and pierced towards Xiao Chen’s chest. This was the pierce of the Basic Saber Techniques.
It was just a simple pierce, and Liu Ruyue made it look very vigorous, causing one not to dare underestimate its power. Xiao Chen remembered he could only use the eight basic moves of the saber. He quickly used push and sent his saber up, blocking Liu Ruyue’s move.
This was not a true fight; it was only an exchange of pointers. Thus, there was no killing intent. While they exchanged moves, Liu Ruyue would occasionally give Xiao Chen some pointers, telling him of his mistakes.
Then she would demonstrate it, showing the correct form to Xiao Chen with a serious expression. Xiao Chen had pretty good talent in the first place. With a few exchanges, he experienced a speedy improvement. Soon, he found the feeling of it.
The days in Qingyun Peak passed slowly like this. Liu Ruyue would come and exchange blows with Xiao Chen every afternoon. Aside from the Basic Saber Techniques, Xiao Chen would take some time to run around the dueling grounds.
Every day, he would push his body to the limit and then cultivate, tempering his body continuously. Now, Xiao Chen was able to run around the dueling grounds a hundred times easily.
In the night, Xiao Chen would lie on his bed and read the Flowing Cloud Scripture Lu Chen gave him, sorting out the energies within his body. Because of the Battle Sage Origin, his meridians were somewhat chaotic.
These were the rare peaceful days where he could systematically manage everything he learned after he left Mohe City. When there was anything he did not understand, he would go to Liu Ruyue to ask for help, and he would always obtain a satisfactory answer.
Although his cultivation did not increase by much in these days, his personal fighting strength had reached an unprecedented peak after he dealt with his problems.
In the blink of an eye, two months passed. Xiao Chen’s improvement in the Basic Saber Techniques was good. He already reached the peak of the Small Perfection.
After training the Basic Saber Techniques to this level, Xiao Chen could obviously feel the strength of the Rushing Thunder Saber Technique increase significantly when he executed it again.
Furthermore, he comprehended it at a deeper level. He was just just short a step of getting his previously incomplete merger of his insights to the realm of perfection.
In the end, there were some unfortunate manners. The thing he wanted to learn the most, Listening To the Sword and Communicating With It, was rejected by Liu Ruyue. She only said it was not time yet.
Since he was asked her of this favor, Xiao Chen could not push too hard. The most important thing was Liu Ruyue treated him really well in the past two months.
On this day, Xiao Chen did the same as usual. He got up early and prepared to go to the dueling ground. The instant he opened his doors, he discovered Liu Ruyue and her brother, as well as Shao Yang and Xiao Meng. They were standing outside his open door with a smile.
Xiao Chen asked in confusion, “What day is today? Are we not going to the dueling grounds? Why did you guys come here?”
Liu Suifeng chuckled, “You guessed correctly. We do not need to go to the dueling grounds today. We were afraid we would miss you. So, we came earlier to tell you the news.”
Liu Ruyue smiled warmly and continued, “Today is the day the Supreme Elder of Divine Saber Camp will give a lecture. That is the Supreme Elder, a Martial Monarch. So, I decided we will all go together.”
A Martial Monarch Supreme Elder, a fervent light lit up in Xiao Chen’s eyes. There was a ripple in his normally calm heart. However, it was not surprising. A Martial Monarch was the strongest cultivator of the Great Qin Nation; or at least that it is what everyone knew.